Police arrest suspected thug over disruption of Delta council poll

A SUSPECTED thug, who attempted to disrupt last Saturday’s council poll at Orhuwohorun Primary School in Ovwian Aladja, Udu Local Council of Delta State, has been arrested by the police.

  The Delta Police Spokesman, Mr. Roland Preston, said in Asaba yesterday that while accreditation was going on at wards/units 15, 16, 17 and 19 at Orhuwohorun Primary School during the election, some suspected cultists/political thugs numbering over 50 armed with battle axes, cutlasses and gallons of fuel invaded the premises, chased away officials of the Delta State Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC) and voters, and also destroyed some electoral materials.

  Preston said that on receipt of the information, some patrol teams swiftly mobilised to the scene and arrested one of the miscreants 25 with a cutlass while others escaped, adding that two other sharp cutlasses were recovered at the scene.

  The spokesman said that investigation was still ongoing while efforts are on to track down the fleeing miscreants.

  Meanwhile, a group, Inter-Party Advisory Council of Nigeria, has commended Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan for providing an enabling environment for the Delta State Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC) to conduct the recent local council election in the state.

  The Chairman, Mr. Paul Isamade, told reporters in Asaba yesterday that voters were able to cast their votes in an atmosphere devoid of intimidation and rancour during last Saturday’s election that held across the 25 local councils of the state.

  Isamade, who said the provision of adequate funds and logistics by the government was crucial in enabling the commission to organise a credible election, noted that they monitored the exercise across some local councils and were impressed with the conduct as the electoral umpire performed creditably well.